@DontTreadOnMe,
I belive that the selection of Palin was much like the bumper sticker that says:
Piss of a liberal, buy a gun.
Selcting Palin had nothing to do with her experience, she has enough experience to be criticized by the republicans
for not having enough of it.
It had nothing to do with her "clean up" government stance, because she abused her power to do her housecleaning.
It had nothing to do with her ability to cross the aisle and work with the democrats, she is about as partisan as they come.
The list is long and distinguished.
She was not chosen for any virtues she possessed other than the fact that her selection would piss of the liberals. The obvious lack of vetting done of Palin makes this clear.
In the perception of having pissed off the left, the right rallies behind her like a bunch of lemmings perched atop a chasm, because, for them, merely pissing off the other side constitutes a major victory.